Category: Land and Conservation Management

In the rocky landscape of the North West Highlands soil is a rare and precious resource both for agriculture and woodlands. Inland, Assynt benefits from patches of limestone bedrock which provide occasional oases of fertile soil. Although the soils of this area have not been studied in detail, recent research across the North Atlantic region…

There has been some extremely important survey work undertaken in the past of these internationally important habitats. However, in areas this survey work is incomplete and where data is available it is often not in a modern web and GIS compatible format. The aims of this project are to: Obtain more information on a range…

Freshwater forms a significant part of the Assynt and Coigach landscape, with the lochs dominating this habitat. While we have a reasonable amount of data on the rivers and burns within the area, only the annual catch data provided by anglers exists for the lochs. This project will build on this existing knowledge. It will…

The Atlantic Hazel woods are one of Scotland’s most ancient woodlands, and they are likely to have been present in the project area for over 9,500 years. People have made use of the hazel resource in Coigach and Assynt in many ways over thousands of years. They are important for a whole range of connected…

The project area’s existing native woodland extends to approximately 4,000 hectares – roughly 6.5% of the total land area. Much of this comprises of small, scattered fragments found along the area’s coastal fringes. Due to their small size most native woodlands are not designated, but offer considerable potential for protection and expansion to improve their…

North Coast 500 Working Group has set up an environmental committee to look at the issue of litter and other environmental impacts of the route. If you have any suggestions for them, this blog asks you to get in touch by emailing enquiries@northcoast500.com to let...